Learning To Breathe
by Dracoisalooker76
Summary: I hate basketball. Really I do. But, no matter how much I hate it, I have to play it. I have to be good at it. And do you know why? Because I'm Troy's brother. Because I'm the coach's son.


**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, except maybe Tip, he's my character.**

**Okay, I just noticed that there were a lot more Troy has a sister stories than Troy has a brother stories, so I decided to make my own Troy has a brother story. So this is a little Troy's brother is jealous story.**

**Learning To Breathe**

So this is a way, that I say I need You  
This is a way  
This is a way

That I'm learning to breathe  
I'm learning to crawl  
I'm finding that You and You alone can break my fall  
I'm living again, awake and alive  
I'm dying to breathe in these abundant skies

-Switchfoot

I hate basketball. Really I do.

There isn't a point to it. You run after a stupid ball and shoot it in one of those hoop things.

Stupid sport.

But, no matter how much I hate it, I have to play it. I have to be good at it. And do you know why?

Because I'm Troy's brother. Because I'm the coach's son. Because my nickname is the name of a stupid game you play with one of those basketballs- Tip. Yep, my mom let my dad name me. It was all because she named Troy. I was Thomas, but to be called Tip. Ugh, so now my very existence involves basketball.

Can you shoot me?

But do you know what I love? I love film making. Yeah, I know, weird for me to like that, but it's so much fun.

But I'll never be able to do that because I have to play basketball. I have to be dedicated. I have to be like Troy.

* * *

"So, how was school today boys?" 

"Good. But practice was so hard," Troy joked.

"That's because you're out of shape," Dad smiled.

"Tip, how was school," Mom asked.

"It was great. Fantastic actually," I lied. It was actually really bad. I was late to English with Darbus and then I missed practice so I could go to Mr. Hendricks (our film teacher) and talk to him about a video contest. I had to tell him that I couldn't do it because it had to have a parent consent and I knew my parents wouldn't consent.

"How was practice?" Dad gave me _that _look. The look he gave when he knew me or Troy was lying.

"Good," I lied. Pathetically, I should ask. Why couldn't I lie? Troy could, he was really good at it, seems as he's come in late almost three nights in a row after being with Gabriella and said that he was 'with the guys.'

"Oh, because Coach Hammond said that you missed today. Asked if you were feeling under the weather," Dad said.

Okay, my hands were getting clammy and my breathing was out of whack. Why did this always happen when someone found out I lied.

"Tip! You have championships this month! You can't go skipping practices," Dad yelled. I gulped, this wasn't the end of it. Dad is going to go off into a little rant and then yell at me some more and then go over plays with Troy. That's what happened, every time.

"Why don't you yell at Troy! He's been coming in after curfew after being with Gabriella!" Okay, that was odd. Something actually came out of my mouth. Dad looked at me and then turned on Troy, anger in his eyes. Well, I got him off my back.

"Troy?"

"Dad," he said. Now I felt bad. Troy had told me about Gabriella in complete secrecy and I told Dad.

I looked at Mom. She was rubbing her temples, her dinner ruined. I back out of my chair and walked slowly up the stairs to my room. My room covered with basketball players' faces that I could careless about. I sat at my desk and took the permission form out of my pocket. I already had my movie ready, I just needed Dad and Mom to sign the form.

I rippedthe formhalf, right down the middle and put it on the floor behindthe movie I was going to send in. My dad would never sign it so why bother getting my hopes up. Mr. Hendricks had told me to try to get it signed, but he knew as well as I did that my dad would never sign it.

I heard stomping, Troy coming up the stairs. My door slammed open and Troy stood in the doorway.

"What the hell is wrong with you," he yelled.

"No, hello Tip how you doing," I asked sarcastically.

"Why did you tell Dad! He's going to be down my throat and in my business and everything!"

"Welcome to my life," I said standing up and walking out the door. "I'm going out," I told my parents as I passed them in the living room.

"No, you will sit down and tell me why you skipped out on practice!"

"You want to know why Dad, because I hate it. Because the only reason you want me to be good at it is because you want me to be like Troy. I'm not Troy and I'll never be Troy," I yelled. "Just a question, do you look at me and see Tip or do you see Troy?"

* * *

"Hey Tippy!" 

"Bree, you're the only person who can call me that okay."

She smiled and looked up at me. She and I have been best friends since she moved in down the street four years ago.

"How's the wildcat today?"

"Oh Troy, he hates me, but he's fine."

"I meant you. You're the only freshman on the JV team, so you constitute as a wildcat."

I shook my head and started to walk toward lunch, which was the only time I had to talk with Bree. "I told Dad I hate basketball last night."

"How did he take it?"

"Pretty bad, but when has he ever taken anything I've said good?"

She smiled sympathetically at me. "If you hate basketball, will he sign the permission slip?"

"No. He thinks it's a phase, Bree. That I'll magically just start loving basketball again." I shook my head. "I don't work that way, he should know that by now."

"Tip!"

I turned and saw Chad, Jason ans Zeke running up behind me. "What?"

"Your brother's mental!"

"I knew that." I laughed a little in my brain, "what has Troy done now?"

"He's got callbacks for the musical."

"What?"

"That's what I said," Chad moaned. "Do you know where he is?"

"No, remember he hates me, he told you this morning."

"Oh yeah." Chad started off toward the cafeteria door with Jason and Zeke following behind him.

"Maybe, your dad will sign it now," Bree said.

"I doubt it, all his attention will be on Troy now." We sat at a bench and she laid her head on my shoulder. Had Dad walked in, he would have gotten the wrong idea, but Bree always did that. I didn't really pay attention during lunch, but I did laugh when Sharpay got Gabriella's lunch spilled on her clothes.

* * *

"Hey Tip?" 

I opened my eyes to find Troy standing over me. "What?"

"Um...I'm sorry. I just shouldn't have acted like that, I was being childish. I mean, you were mad and I probably would have told Dad too if I was in the same situation."

"Why the sudden change of heart?"

"I was talking to Gabriella today and well, I want you to come to the callbacks."

"Why?" I didn't really want to go. If Darbus was there, I definitely wasn't going. We had never really like each other. The first time I met her was at a party she was holding because my dad started teaching at East High. I was four and bounced a ball in her garden, then she gave me a lecture about gardening and theater and such.

"Because, I doubt Dad will be there and Mom has to work so, you want to cheer me and Gabriella on?"

"Sure." Why did I say that? Because I was the good brother, because I was always there for Troy when he needed me, yeah right! Me and Troy have never been close. It has always been him and Dad together going over plays and me and Mom hidden in the shadows.

"Thanks, I appreciate it. But, you're going to have to go to the game first."

"What?"

"It's part of our plan, just follow me out and yeah..." He nodded and walked away, leaving me on the grass in our backyard. I looked up at the sky.

"Tip?"

Okay, this was annoying. Every time I got a chance to relax a family member interrupted me. "Yeah Dad."

"You want to talk?"

"No."

"You want to play basketball?"

"Not really."

"Have you seen Troy?"

"He just went back in the house." I felt bad acting like this, but I really wasn't in the mood. I looked at my dad and noticed he left. I sighed, wasn't a father son relationship supposed to be this great thing? I'd never know because me and Dad were never and will never be as close as he and Troy are.

* * *

The buzzer sounded and Troy's shot went in. I was cheering in the crowd and jumping up and down with Bree. This was one of the only times I can remember cheering for my brother and it felt good. Bree led me down to the court and we cheered on the guys. Soon we got separated. 

"Good game Chad," I yelled. He gave me a high five and then went over to Taylor. I went over to Troy, right as Taylor grabbed Gabriella and the two of them started to giggle about something. "Hey Troy, good shot!"

"Thanks," he said, turning around and then facing me again smiling. "Have you seen Dad," he asked.

He must have noticed that my face dropped. "Not that I want to be with him right now. It's just, I think he has something for you."

"Tip!" I turned to my father's voice. He walked up to me and held out a piece of paper. "This came for you in the mail."

I looked at it and read the words on the envelope. There was no return address so I ripped it open wanting to see what it was. It was a letter and I soaked up every word, it was from the Youth Film Festival. "How," I asked.

"I found your permission slip ripped up on the floor by the video. I watched your movie. It was good." He looked completely sincere and I smiled, for once my dad congratulated me. I smiled and read the letter again. "Good job, you deserved it," he said walking toward Troy to give him the trophy.

"Whats that Tip?"

I turned to Bree and lifted her up twirling her around. "My movie, it got first place at that festival. They want me to go to some summer program in California."

"That's great," she said as I set her down. Then I did the one thing I never thought I would do. I kissed Bree, gently at first. Then she kissed me back and my letter fell to the ground. When we broke apart, I bit my lip and we both blushed.

"Wow," I managed. Oh, I'm an idiot, she probably thinks I didn't like it.

"Yeah, wow."

"Yo Tip! You comin' to the after party with us," Chad shouted.

"I'll meet you there," I yelled back. I looked at Chad and could tell he had seen the entire thing. Oh man, I was in for an ear full from Troy and Dad tonight.

I looked back down at Bree. "So, about the after party, you want to go with me?"

"I'd love to." I smiled and she held my hand. We walked out of the gym and walked to Chad's house, which wasn't to far. We walked in and she went to talk to Taylor, Sharpay and Gabriella. I leaned up against the wall remembering everything that had happened that day.

"Tip," I heard two voices say in unison.

"Chad, Troy," I said warily.

"So..." Chad was way to anxious to hear about me and Bree.

"Hey Troy, did you kiss Gabriella yet?" I didn't really want to talk to them about Bree and me, especially since I don't really know what we are anymore.

"I'll tell you after you tell me about you and Bree."

"There's nothing to tell," I shrugged, kind of truthful.

"What was your movie about," Troy asked, getting the idea that I wasn't going to be cooperative.

"It was about a family, learning to breathe." I left Troy and Chad staring at my retreating back and for the first time in my life, I walked away from Troy with a smile on my face. Maybe being a Bolton wasn't as bad as I thought. Maybe, just maybe, my life wasn't as horrible as I had made it out to be, now that I'm living. Now that I learned to breathe.

**Okay, the ending's kind of corny, but whatever. I hope you liked it! I needed to get this idea out of my head because when I was writing my other story, Invisibility, I kept writing Tip instead of Mack.**

**If you've never heard the song Learning to Breathe by Switchfoot, I recommend it. **

**Review, I like constructive criticism. **


End file.
